The vet was out this morning and did a lameness exam on
Alpine. The reason I couldn’t tell exactly which foot was sore is because
he’s lame on both fronts. She had him trotting out on a circle and
a straight line, and hoof tested him. He didn’t react to the hoof
testers at all…but he’s very stoic, and doesn’t show pain
until it’s bad. She thinks he is showing signs of either pedal
osteitis or navicular syndrome. Neither of which is good news.
So, next week we will taking Alpine down to the University of Florida
for a lameness work up, with X-rays and nerve blocks, and all that fun
stuff. Depending on the outcome, I’m thinking that my little Paso
just got retired from endurance completely. We are hoping he’ll be
ok just to hack around lightly. He’s only 14! Al’s
massage therapist was here this morning. She summed the whole thing up for me
by cussing. I agreed wholeheartedly.
